I visited 2 parts of this nomination in January 2019. Abr Forest was my first stop and it is very tourist centric, with many guest houses and hikes around “Cloud Forest”. Unfortunately on day 2 it started snowing in the morning and the visibility was so bad it was really hazardous to take the 83 through the Khar Turan NP (not part of the Hyrcanian Forest nomination btw). Once I made it to Gonbad Kavus and visited Qabus I continued driving East.

Here I drove through the National Golestan Forest, formerly listed as a separate nomination under the name Golestan NP which aren't technically the same thing but I think mean the same area. So actually I drove through the national park and there are already signs that is is listed on the tentative list for world heritage. I was impressed with the rock formations and the the forest looks healthy but I saw no real good place to stop and enjoy a hike, picnic or whatever. Many people stopped on the way just in the side of the road to feed the boars (hate that). The NP is huge and the main road cuts right through it so there may be smaller areas on the side that actually allow for more touristy stuff.

I highly doubt this is worthy of the title world heritage. The document doesn't even describe why it is unique. Just reading “natural beauty and its masterpieces of nature creative genius in the form of this ancient forest.” meh makes me feel like someone is really proud of their own forests but compared to other parts of the world it didn't seem special at all, plus the sites listed as other unique areas aren't exactly the same league it is trying to be. I am interested to see the evaluation in the summer.